[IAEP] [FIELDBACK] Etoys

[Steve Thomas]

Roberto,

Here are some examples of teaching Mathematics with Etoys:

   1. Fractions:
   1. Fraction Tools <http://squeakland.org/showcase/project.jsp?id=7673> -
      Use virtual Cuisenaire Rods to help kids obtain a better understanding of
      fractions and units of measure.
      2. Fractions of a
Circle<http://squeakland.org/showcase/project.jsp?id=7372>- A Fraction
Game
   2. Area:
   1. Area Geo Boards <http://squeakland.org/showcase/project.jsp?id=7744> -
      Exercises for learning about squares and areas.
   3. Pythagorean Theorem:
      1. Demonstration of Pythagorean Theorem Proof:
      Check Video first: video <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIGCdOtfd7E>
      The project <http://squeakland.org/showcase/project.jsp?id=9486> shows
      the final result, could be modified to challenge kids to prove it.
      4. Geometry
      1. Shapes <http://squeakland.org/showcase/project.jsp?id=7751> - This
      project introduces kids to Geometric Shapes, terminology and
comparing and
      contrasting different shapes.
       2. Creating
Polygons<http://www.squeakland.org/showcase/project.jsp?id=9444>-
Based upon 40
      Math Shapes<http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/2009/08/40-maths-shapes-challenges.html>designed
by Barry Newell.  This challenge could also be done in Turtle Art
      and Scratch, but it demonstrates one of the advantages of Etoys
over Scratch
      (haven't used Turtle Art, so can't comment). In that you can
drag scripting
      tiles onto the Playfield in Etoys.  This allows you to focus the students
      attention on the problem you want them to solve rather than
having them look
      through all the tiles to figure out what to use.  The Etoys
Challenges are
      an excellent example of this.
      One of the challenges of learning Scratch and Etoys is discovering all
      the scripting tiles.  This is easier in Scratch as they are
always visible,
      in Etoys you have to open an Objects Viewer, not hard, but an extra step.
      NOTE: In this project all the scripting tiles you will need aren't
      always visible (it is a work in progress I believe, so it may
have changed
      by now).

What grades and subject matter will you be teaching?


On Sun, Feb 28, 2010 at 1:58 PM, roberto <roberto03 at gmail.com> wrote:

> >>> >>> On Wed, Feb 24, 2010 at 2:43 PM, Simon Schampijer
> >>> >>> <simon at schampijer.de>
> >>> >>> wrote:
> >>> >>>>
> >>> >>>> Hi,
> >>> >>>>
> >>> >>>> I am teaching on a regular basis in the Planetarium pilot in
> Berlin,
> >>> >>>> Germany [1]. I have been using Etoys now for several weeks and
> here
> >>> >>>> is
> >>> >>>> some first feedback.
> >>> >>>>
> >>> >>>> First: The kids do like it a lot! I want to encourage everyone to
> >>> >>>> include it in his curriculum.
> >>> >>>>
> >>> >>>> For example you can teach easily the concepts of the coordinate
> >>> >>>> system
> >>> >>>> with Etoys. You create an object and print out the X and Y values
> >>> >>>> when
> >>> >>>> moving it on the screen. Or you can use a joystick to alter the
> >>> >>>> position
> >>> >>>> of this object and use this method to deepen the coordinate system
> >>> >>>> concept.
>
> thank you for sharing you experience;
> i have to choose between EToys, Turtle Art and Scratch for next year
> math courses;
>
> i like TA too much and i won't take it apart;
> but i need to understand well the differences between EToys and Scratch:
> their goals, their functionalities, pros/cons etc
>
> is there a comparative study available ?
>
> --
> roberto
> _______________________________________________
> IAEP -- It's An Education Project (not a laptop project!)
> IAEP at lists.sugarlabs.org
> http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/iaep
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.sugarlabs.org/archive/iaep/attachments/20100302/bd9cd92e/attachment-0001.htm